My 2yo ds

[Claire2009]

He has a hearing test on the 1st May, although I & they (HV's) think his hearing is ok it's the first step to finding out IF there is a problem... HV did mention him being tone deaf so thats also a possibility..

He's on the waiting list for Speech Therapy, its around a 12mth waiting list but hopefully he'll have more speech by then anyway!

He does understand a lot.

Me to J : Are you ok?
J : Yah
Me : Good!
J : Yah

Thats his response when he's asked if he's ok, if he wants some juice etc

He says : Hiya, Yah, Mama, Carrr & ta ...

When he points at things I explain what they are, like yesterday he pointed at the ceiling when we were at a group & I said "Yes thats the light"...then the door "Yes thats a door" etc etc

He seems to be improving, allbeit slowly! He doesnt get upset about not being understood but he does get annoyed with his Sister....normal I suppose though! Thats more to do with play!

He's a bit of a loner when playing at M&T group/Playschool and doesnt seem to interact with the other Kids other than to try to take whatever they have, trike/ride on etc

He done a no.1 & 2 on the Potty just now!

He crawled at 8mths, walked at 17mths, fed himself from 12mths with a spoon, really well too. So he is a little slow!? I think...

Apart from pointing, does he use any other non-verbal communication to get his point across (eg nodding or shaking head, opening and closing his hand to signal 'more', using finger at mouth to say 'shh', reaching his arms up when he wants picking up)?

You say he's a bit of loner at playgroups - what's his interaction like with you, or other adults, or with another child in a one to one situation? Also, what's his imaginative play like? Does he use a pretend telephone/kitchen stuff/pretend to feed dolls or teddies or pretend that (for example) a piece of lego is an aeroplane?

It's a great sign that you think his understanding is good and of course all children develop in different ways and at different times.

There are ways you can help him whilst you're waiting for professional speech therapy. If you can afford it I know that a lot of people recommend the It Takes Two To Talk dvd made by the Hanen organisation in canada. I use the More Than Words dvd which is for children on the autism spectrum but some of the advice is also suitable for 'normal' children, eg:

• use fewer words (rule of thumb, if he has no words you use one, if he has one word you use two etc)
• repetition repetition repetition! You should find yourself going hoarse!
• give him a reason to communicate - eg put his favourite toy on a high shelf or in a transparent box (that's how we taught our son to say 'open')
• give him an opportunity to respond - mums can be so in synch with their children that they anticipate their needs before they do, so stop with the waitress service, make him ask for it! Wait for longer than usual to give him time (count up to five watermelons in your head)
• if you've given him the time to respond and he doesn't, say the expected answer for him (called 'modelling'). Say it slow, loud and clear and repeat it!
• introduce choices - at lunch time you can say 'do you want an apple, or a pear?' holding each one up as you say it - wait for him to point or make a sound (or say the word!) to indicate which one he wants.

There are lots of other similar strategies but I can't think of them off the top of my head!